Burfitt v. Ohio Dept. of Rehab. & Corr.

Citations

• 2020 Ohio 3863

Syllabus

Medical malpractice expert witness L.C.C.R. 8(E) summary judgment Civ.R. 56. Plaintiff, an inmate, filed a medical malpractice claim against defendant for care received while incarcerated. In order to sustain a medical malpractice claim, plaintiff must produce expert testimony to establish both the standard of care and that the malpractice was the proximate and direct cause of plaintiff's injuries. Local court rules state that a party may not call an expert unless a written report from that expert has been produced. Defendant moved for summary judgment because plaintiff did not produce a written report from an expert. Plaintiff admitted in his response that he had been unable to retain an expert because he is incarcerated. Based on these facts, the court found that there was no genuine issue of material fact regarding plaintiff's failure to retain an expert and provide a report. The court determined that plaintiff could not sustain his burden of proof. Therefore, the court granted defendant's motion for summary judgment and rendered judgment in favor of the defendant.